Medical jobs drive training needs

“Medical has been our mainstay,” said Cheryl Tilley, director of Vatterott College in Springfield.

Tilley’s not alone in that sentiment. Brian Stewart, president of Bryan College, said as the population continues to age, the need for trained medical students will only grow.

“It’s needed, especially in this area with baby boomers reaching retirement and a lot of people moving to this part of Missouri to retire,” Stewart said. “There are a lot of people that will continue to support the health care need in the area.”

School officials aren’t the only people who see job opportunities in the medical field.

“In terms of job skills, if we tell people to get training in a medical or health-related field, there is going to be a job for them somewhere,” said Jaydean Miller, Missouri Career Center Workforce Development supervisor.

Cindy Hinds, director of public information at Ozarks Technical Community College, said 722 students listed Allied Health as a potential major during last fall’s enrollment and 64 students enrolled in the Licensed Practical Nursing program, which has become increasingly popular.

“Our nursing program is another program (in demand). We turn away so many students because we are limited on the number we can take,” Hinds said.

Dana Baldwin, director of career services with Springfield College, said the school is investigating the possibility of adding LPN programs because of overwhelming interest.

In an effort to meet specialized demands, Stewart said Bryan College added a personal training program as a specialized section of medical study.

“From what we’ve seen, it is the next phase of the health care industry,” Stewart said. “Most people think a personal trainer is someone in the gym, but it is getting to a point where it also deals with diet, health, weight management and more. It’s a quality of life change, and we are seeing many private practice physicians wanting to keep (trainers) on staff full time,” Stewart said.

As the medical field adapts to changes, so do training programs for potential health care employees.

With changing laws regarding the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, and the types of information that must be kept private, schools are specializing in health information programs.

“That area seems to be a big need per our advisory members; they comment on that a couple times a year,” Tilley said. “Toward the end of the year here, we are going to look at adding additional time for students to spend focused toward (health information) with a medical office assistant degree.”

Dental programs at OTC, Vatterott and Springfield College continue to see increased enrollment. Not only are students interested in the opportunities, but employers also are seeking the graduates of the dental programs.

The dental hygienist program “came about because of demand,” Hinds said. “Local dentists were coming to us saying, ‘There isn’t anybody who has an accredited program for hygienists.’”

With pay starting at $35 an hour for some in the profession, Hinds expects that dental programs will continue to attract students.

Outside of health care, there seem to be plenty of jobs available for administrative support professionals.

“We have just under 500 jobs in the Ozarks region listed in the Great Hires system, and the listings for administrative support are the highest … with 104 postings,” Miller said.

Vatterott's overall placement rate for its computer, administrative and health care programs is 83 percent, and the school's health care placement rate is between 80 percent and 90 percent.

The school's diploma programs range from 66 quarterly credit hours to 72 quarterly credit hours, and its associate of occupational studies degrees are 108 quarterly credit hours.

“For our upcoming enrollment period we have a seen a big leap toward (business administrative positions) and the students know there is a need for that,” Tilley said. “I do believe people are looking to go to a career school for this type of training because they know how focused we are in our training toward the industry.”

The focus on specific industries and their needs sometimes means that training schools must revamp their offerings.

Bryan College is reworking its programs for computer networking and programming.

“We are seeing a transition in the (information technology) world. People don’t just want networkers or programmers, they want an IT person,” Stewart said. “We are working on the marrying of those two programs … to make a more well-rounded employee.”

Hinds said OTC’s electronic and engineering programs also have shifted with changes in technology.

“In electronics classes, we used to teach electronics in light of repairing electronic equipment, but that’s a dead industry, so what (we) are doing now is (we) are teaching electronics as it relates to robotics,” Hinds said. “Typically we don’t drop programs. We see what is needed now and adjust.” [[In-content Ad]]